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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26728570">stay</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/akinorax/pseuds/akinorax'>akinorax</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Haikyuu!!</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - College/University, Angst, Developing Relationship, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Kozume Kenma &amp; Kuroo Tetsurou Friendship, i love suffering yes, mostly unestablished relationship</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-09-30</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-09-30</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 09:15:50</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,131</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26728570</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/akinorax/pseuds/akinorax</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Kenma knew, deep down, that it was so wrong that his best friend was possibly on his deathbed, but he was hanging out with the most incredible girl he's ever known. His best friend was dying, and he was finding love. But was it though? Didn't he deserve a little tinge of happiness for himself?</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Kozume Kenma/Reader</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>8</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>stay</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Kenma exited the hospital room, sighing tiredly as he headed to the small coffee shop near the hospital entrance. He took a good look around him, not going to lie, it was pathetic, but it was the best one he could go to at that moment. He ordered a latte, not overthinking his order like he usually did. He had other things, bigger things, to worry about. </p><p>He didn’t think that it would get down to this, or at least this bad. Just a few days ago Kuroo had been in his house, helping him with his project and hanging out. He looked perfectly healthy. He had laughed along with the jokes on TV Kenma didn’t find funny, he had ordered take-out as usual and had been his usual annoying self. He looked like and seemed like the Kuroo he knew. </p><p>Until last night, of course. At exactly 10 pm he got a call from the hospital, Kuroo had gone worse. He had been there for his weekly chemo session, and he collapsed out of the blue just when he was exiting the hospital lobby. Kenma had quickly put on a hoodie over his pyjamas as he took a cab to the hospital. </p><p>He had been rushed to Kuroo’s hospital room by a nurse who was trying to explain the situation to him, but he wasn’t listening. He had stood frozen as he stared at Kuroo’s seemingly-lifeless figure. Kenma wanted to shake him awake, wanted to yell at him until he opened his eyes and told Kenma that he was fine. </p><p>Apparently Kuroo’s blood cells weren’t supporting him anymore, the Leukemia had gotten the best of him. Kenma had not left his side since last night. The others had visited of course, Yaku was the one who forced him out to ‘get some air’ as he said. </p><p>After the barista gave him his order, Kenma looked around for a seat. He could bet that Yaku wouldn’t allow him enter the room even if he insisted. Conveniently, there was one more table available. He sat down, cupping his coffee to keep his hands warm. He momentarily closed his eyes to find peace only to be disrupted by a feminine voice.</p><p>“Excuse me, is anyone sitting here?” A timid voice called out. He opened his eyes in irritation, but the emotion quickly turned to slight admiration. She was beautiful, even though she looked evidently exhausted. He simply nodded as she sent a grateful smile to him.</p><p>“Thank you, it’s so hard to find a place to sit at this hour and I really need the break from the hospital room.” She confessed. Kenma was honestly tired and he wasn’t in the mood to talk to anyone but she looked like she needed it and maybe he did too. “I get what you mean. you just feel trapped as you look at the patient lying silently on the bed.” He mumbled out. she nodded in understanding. “Who’s the patient?” She asked. He bit his lip lightly, she was a stranger but she surely didn’t mean any harm.</p><p>“My best friend. Leukemia” He admitted, her expression turned to pity, “Oh, that’s terrible. I’m so sorry.” He sighed as he shrugged, then turning to her, he asked, “how about you?” She fidgeted in her seat, looking a little nervous. She then mumbled out as she fiddled with her fingers, “Brother, he got into a car accident.” He nodded as she did previously, trying to look a little more sympathetic, “I’m sorry too.”</p><p>There was a momentary silence between the two. Suddenly her phone rang. She stared at it silently, not picking it up. She sighed then put the device in the pocket of her jacket and stood up. “I gotta go, thank you. I hope your best friend will recover soon.” She said with a sad smile. he thought she was already walking away when yoongi heard her small voice,</p><p>“You’re cute.” She said out of the blue, staring into her own cup of coffee. Her eyes looked blank, as if the words coming out of her mouth were never said at all. Kenma’s ears reddened. “Huh?” He managed to sputter out, flustered. </p><p>She looked up, eyes wide. “Uhm-sorry i didn’t think you heard me..” She muttered, face flushed with embarrassment. Kenma could feel his face heating up as well but he tried to not show it. “It’s fine, and if you want to meet here again tomorrow, i wouldn’t really.. mind” He mumbled out, his face getting even hotter by the second, if that was even possible. She nodded with a softer smile then waved goodbye and left.</p><p>He sat there and tried to process the last few seconds. He slapped his face lightly, getting a few odd looks from strangers around him. ‘Get it together, your best friend is fighting for his life. you shouldn’t be thinking about a girl.’ He tried to chastise himself. But no matter what he told himself, he couldn’t help the warmth that spread across his chest as he took a sip from his coffee and stole a glance at the empty seat in front of him. </p><p>-</p><p>The next few weeks were nothing but somewhat of a blur for him. They met everyday at the same time, at the same spot in the cafe in the hospital lobby. The first few days were filled with awkward pauses and repetitive topics, but they eventually became comfortable enough with each other to start joking around and make lighter conversations. </p><p>He learned that her name was Y/n and that she loved coffee and hated tea, and that she loved rain and everything related to it, and that she liked corgis because she thought they have cute butts, but most of all he learned that she could possibly be the most incredible person that he’d ever met, second to Kuroo of course. </p><p>That day, Kenma took a deep breath as he waited patiently for y/n at the cafe. A few minutes passed, he could hear the clock behind him ticking. He frowned, she was never late. He turned his phone around to see the time. 11:27. He tapped his fingers to the screen anxiously, looking around for a face he had become so familiar with. </p><p>Where was she?</p><p>Before he could overthink further, he saw her running to him, tears running down her face and her face flushed with tiredness. He stood up, running towards her and catching her just as she tripped over her untied shoelaces. He took her into his embrace as she sobbed into his shoulder. </p><p>“Kenma..”</p><p>She choked out in between sobs. He ran his fingers through her hair, trying to calm her down. People were staring, he could hear them whispering. He saw a nurse approaching them and he could hear her voice ringing through his ears, offering to give them a room to calm her down. He nodded, everything still buzzing through his head. He managed to help y/n stand up but she still wasn’t stable on her feet, she was leaning onto him as she cried onto his chest even more. </p><p>When they finally had some privacy he managed to calm her down. “Hey, hey what’s wrong.” He asked with a soft voice, not wanting to break her even more. She looked to him with teary eyes, slightly crushing his heart. </p><p>“My brother…” She started, but then choked out another sob. He didn’t say anything, just pulled her into a tight hug. “The doctors announced him to be brain dead this morning.” She finalized, her cries getting louder. Kenma stroked her hair gently, not knowing what else to say or do. They stayed that way for quite a while. Her breathing then started to stabilize and her sobs ceased. </p><p>“Do you need anything?” Kenma asked, she simply shook her head and tightened her grip on him. “I just… want to stay like this for a little more. Please.” She whispered. He complied, doing nothing more than hold her in his arms. </p><p>She then told him that when the doctors said he was brain dead when they checked on her brother that morning. She didn’t know who else to go to. Their parents weren’t there and the first person she thought of running to was him. The thought of that made his ears red once more but he shrugged it off. She then said that she wanted them to see her brother together one last time before the nurses pulled the plug on him. </p><p>Kenma took a shaky breath as he entered the hospital room. looking around, it wasn’t any different from the one Kuroo was in, it just seemed more-sad. Y/n cried again, seeing her brother. He offered his shoulder once more, smiling sympathetically. Her brother looked peaceful, even though there were bruises all over his body. Kenma felt bad for not visiting him previously, hearing Y/n’s words whenever she described him, he seemed like a good person. </p><p>She said her goodbye to him one last time before the nurses pulled his life support. This time she didn’t cry, she just looked at him expressionless as his steady breathing turned to nothing. Silent tears rolled down her cheek but she had a smile on her face when she faced Kenma. He tried his best to send her a comforting smile, then they left the room hand-in-hand.</p><p>-</p><p>Nothing much happened after that. They still met up at the hospital coffee shop but she’s different now, sadder. She also seemed distant, and he thought it was only in his head until she started disappearing from the usual daily meet-ups. </p><p>She had his number but never informed him if she wasn’t coming. When she does show up, she never answers his questions of why she was late, or often doesn’t show. She would just pull a strained smile and change the subject. </p><p>This continued on for a few weeks with no change. Kenma had started to give up on her showing up, but there was a tiny speck deep inside him that had hope that she still cared. Even though things weren’t looking up for him, Kuroo was getting better. He was starting to regain his energy, he could start having full-on conversations again and that was enough to make Kenma forget about her. </p><p>On that unfortunate day, Kenma was sitting by Kuroo’s bed, talking to him like any other when Kuroo suddenly complained that he was dizzy. Kenma went outside to call on the nurse, just in case it was serious. When he returned with them, he had passed out. the nurses started to frantically work, yelling for a doctor, injecting liquids unfamiliar to him, everything was just chaotic. </p><p>Kenma was in a daze when a nurse came to him and said that Kuroo was suffering from internal bleeding which could be critical. fear took over him. He took his phone and rang the only person he knew could comfort him. </p><p>The sound of the call ringing seemed endless to him. Why wasn’t she picking up? He tried again and again, but to no avail. After the sixth unsuccessful try was when he called Yaku. He picked up on the first ring, patiently listening to Kenma’s pathetic attempts of choking up an explanation. Within minutes he came with Lev and Inuoka.  </p><p>Kuroo’s parents came a while after the boys did, looking as distraught as he was. He could see Kuroo’s grandmother crying and his father comforting her. His grandfather was expressionless but his eyes were teary. </p><p>After Yaku’s continuous persistence, Kenma finally went downstairs to take a break. It all felt like deja vu to him, as if history was repeating itself. He went down to the cafe and ordered a latte like he did the first time. </p><p>He then sat down at his seat, cupping his coffee to get its warmth. He looked up, expecting someone familiar to ask him if she could sit on the empty chair in front of him. but she never came. </p><p>His tears started falling, his mouth silently sobbing. He had stayed for her, but she didn’t stay for him. It was pathetic of him to expect more; more from her and more from life. He was mad. Mad at himself for the most, mad for daring to hope that he could find love, mad for daring to hope that Kuroo was going to be better. </p><p>He buried his head onto his hands, letting out silent sobs as all that he had bottled up for months finally released onto his tears. After recollecting himself, he sat up straight, emotionless. He stood up to walk back to Kuroo’s room. Even though she didn’t, he had to stay, just a little longer. For both Kuroo and for himself.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>This is my first work in this platform so yeah, please be nice. Thanks.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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